Rollover accidents aren’t common, but they are often deadly when they do happen. Even if you survive a rollover crash, you could easily sustain serious injuries, which might be permanently disabling. Just in case it ever happens to you, you should know how to react to a rollover accident. An auto body shop can perform expert collision repairs , but mending a human is far more complex.

Get ready for the rollover.

As soon as you feel your vehicle start to tip, you can take a few precautions. Reduce your risk of breaking your ankles by removing your feet from the vicinity of the pedals. Let go of the steering wheel. Cross your arms against your chest to reduce the risk of internal torso injuries. Press backward into the seat—never lean forward because of the risk of traumatic brain injuries and arm fractures.

Stabilize your body after the rollover.

Once your car has stopped moving, brace your feet against the floor. Take a few deep breaths, and try to remain calm. Check yourself for major injuries. Use your hands to check for head, neck, and face injuries. If applicable, ask your passengers if they have sustained injuries.

Get out of the car.

Turn off the engine, but don’t unbuckle your seatbelt right away. Getting free of an overturned vehicle is actually a major cause of injuries in rollover crashes. Place one hand on the ceiling, which will now be on the ground, and brace yourself. Keep your feet stabilized on the floor, and then unbuckle your seatbelt. Once you’re safely seated on the ceiling, look around to figure out the safest exit strategy. If possible, open a door or roll down a window. If necessary, kick a window out or use the metal prongs on the removable headrest to break the window . Once you and all passengers are safely out of the car, move away from it just in case of a fire. Remember to call 911!

No matter how simple or complex the job is, our expert auto collision repair team in San Jose can handle it. Here at Michael J’s Body Shop , we look forward to exceeding your expectations, and returning your car to you in better condition than before the accident. Call our auto collision repair shop at (408) 279-2070.

If you’ve never painted a car before, you might assume that it’s much like using a paint sprayer on an exterior wall of your home. But painting cars is far more complicated, and it’s easier to botch the final result. Never try a DIY approach to painting your own car—you’ll only end up taking it to an auto paint shop when you see your results. Here’s a look at how the professionals handle car paint jobs.

How the Pros Avoid Handprints

It’s very easy to inadvertently contaminate a panel . When this happens, the end result can reveal handprints. Handprints may first appear through the paint as small blisters. Within a month or two, you might start to see the actual print rising to the surface. This happens when the painter places a hand against the panel while prepping it, and doesn’t clean the area afterward. Salt and oil from the skin stick to the panel, leaving the handprint. To avoid this problem, professionals at an auto paint shop can wear gloves to prevent the transfer of contaminants. Alternatively, they can thoroughly clean the panel after sanding it.

How the Pros Avoid Blisters

Paint blisters are unsightly, but easily prevented with the right prep work. Experienced technicians understand the importance of washing the car with a wax and grease remover. Amateurs often skip this step, reasoning that they’re just going to sand the panel anyway. The problem with this is that the sanding tool gets coated in wax and grease. As the metal is sanded, the heat generated by the tool melts the wax and grease, and melds it directly into the metal surface. The undesirable effects might not be noticed right away, but the paint blister will definitely make an appearance later on. Pros avoid this simply by giving the car a thorough scrubbing with a degreaser before getting started with sanding.

The auto body paint experts at Michael J’s Body Shop use state-of-the-art equipment and modern techniques to make cars look like new again. We specialize in precise shade matching. Our auto collision center serving San Jose is available at (408) 279-2070.

Wheel misalignments can cause significant problems for your car. Even a slight misalignment can cause damaging wear and tear, but unfortunately, they are very common. If you take your car in for collision repair, the auto body shop will likely check your alignment as part of the process.

In addition to accidents, wheel misalignments can happen for many other reasons. Hitting a pothole while driving is enough to cause an alignment problem, as it bumping or going over a curb. If you pull into a parking spot too far and hit the barrier, your wheels could become misaligned. Over time, wear and tear on your car will also leak to alignment, as ball and socket joints become loose and rubber starts cracking.

When you choose Michael J’s Body Shop for auto body repair, we’ll carefully inspect your car to ensure that all collision-related damage is addressed, not just the cosmetic dents and bumps. Schedule collision repair in San Jose today by calling (408) 279-2070.